Saturday, July 12, 2008
An Interview with the Rector of Grace Church, Monroe, the Rev’d. Canon Gregg L. Riley, SSC
I conducted the following interview with my rector, Fr. Gregg Riley, on July 4th 2008, regarding his attendance at GAFCON. I hope this is helpful to those who did not attend, and helps put this conference into perspective. Parishioners of Grace Church Monroe, as well as those in the Diocese of Western Louisiana, will find these comments to be of interest especially.
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BJK: It is well known that you accompanied Bishop MacPherson to GAFCON (Global Anglican Futures Conference). How did your invitation to this historic conference come about?
GR+: When I first heard about GAFCON it was January, and I first read about it on a blog, or somewhere. At that time I contacted Bishop Iker, who is an old friend of mine in Fort Worth, because I felt if anyone in the neighborhood was going to be invited it would include Bishop Iker. I asked him how one would go about getting an invitation and, he referred me to Bishop Duncan. I sent Bishop Duncan an e-mail in January and mentioned my interest in attending the conference to represent the Anglo-Catholic/orthodox wing of Western Louisiana. Bishop Duncan replied and said attendance would be by invitation only, and, at that time, he was not sure how many invitations the Americans would receive, out of approximately 1,000 invitations. He said he would keep me in mind and get back to me. So, I made the initial contact in January. As things worked out, I eventually received my invitation from Bishop Duncan to attend GAFCON.
(Bishop MacPherson and Fr. Riley at the Church of the Holy Nativity)
BJK: What motivated you to accept this invitation and attend this pilgrimage?
GR+: Well, initially, it appeared this would be a gathering of orthodox minded Anglican Christians from around the world. It also appeared to be a movement of the Holy Spirit, and, it appeared that the Holy Spirit was present from its conception. I felt moved, or called, to be there. That is what motivated my contact with Bishop Duncan, and my pursuit of an invitation throughout the spring.
BJK: What sets GAFCON apart from other ecclesial gatherings which you have attended?
GR+: The most notable thing setting it apart was being in a room with twelve-hundred like minded people. Lord knows, when you go to General Convention or a diocesan convention, that is not always the case. When you are in a place like the holy city of Jerusalem itself, which has an overwhelming spiritual ambience, and you are there because you feel like this is a movement from the Holy Spirit it has a different atmosphere. You don’t have to apologize for being a Charismatic, Evangelical, or Anglo-Catholic, when the gospel and Lordship of Christ is the focus. At General Convention I am in the minority. At GAFCON, I was not.
BJK: What were your expectations for GAFCON before you arrived?
GR+: Well, you know, I had my hopes and desires that when I returned, I would have something I could bring back to the congregation, and diocese, which would say this is the way forward. So, that was my basic expectation going. I hoped that all of these people were not coming from different parts of the world (some twenty-four nations with seventeen provinces) just to see the holy sites of Jerusalem. They were coming to pray, worship, and discern the movement of the Spirit; to find a way forward. This is exactly what happened.
BJK: Tell me about your arrival in Jerusalem. What did you experience as a Christian entering the Holy Land for the first time?
GR+: Well, the bishop and I had a long flight. It was a twelve hour flight and an eight hour time change. We left Atlanta at 10:40 P. M., Atlanta time, and arrived in Tel Aviv at 5:00 P. M. the next day, Israel time. By the time we got through customs, etc, and took a shuttle into Jerusalem, we arrived at the conference center a little after 7:00 P. M. We were starving, but an 8:00 P.M. session was coming, so we hurriedly ate and went to the session. It was the next morning when all twelve hundred attendants were bussed over to the Mount of Olives. We got out of the buses on top of the mount and had a prayer and praise service. Stepping off of the bus, you look west at the old city of Jerusalem, toward the Church of the Holy Sepulchre and Golden Dome, and you are looking from the same vantage point that Jesus had when he said, “Jerusalem, Jerusalem, how I have long to gather you as a hen gathers her brood.” The panoramic view of the old city, across the Kidron Valley, was a very moving experience for me as a Christian in the Holy Land for the first time.
(Fr. Riley and The Rev'd. Briane Turley from Tulsa, OK at the Wailing Wall)
BJK: Where were some of the sites of pilgrimage you visited?
GR+: This is why we called it a pilgrimage. We started each day with worship, sermon, small groups discerning the Word, and a plenary session. The schedule also allowed for us to go to various holy sites. We went to the Mount of Olives, and following the service, we descended the mount. It was quite a descent. I was amazed at the distance between the Mount of Olives and the old city. The descent is almost a forty degree drop from the mount to the Garden of Gethsemane. There is a church in the garden where we entered in to pray. One afternoon we walked the Via Delarosa with the fourteen Stations of the Cross, which began in the Arab quarter of the old city. We went through the Damascus Gate. The Stations are divided between the Arab and Christian quarters, with the last Stations being in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. This was another very moving experience. On Friday afternoon, we took a bus ride to the Church of the Holy Nativity in Bethlehem. So, we saw some of the major sites. My hotel was within walking distance of the Damascus Gate, so I was fortune to visit and tour the old city a couple of times.
BJK: What role did you play at GAFCON?
GR+: Each of the pilgrims at GAFCON, you know, had an opportunity to add something to the statement. The very first day we were given a questionnaire that asked us what we expected, or hoped would come out of GAFCON. We expressed what we needed to be able to take back to our congregations or dioceses and provinces. These were distributed on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday. The theological committee, which worked on the final statement, took into account the information we supplied through these questionnaires. The draft statement was then posted on Thursday and we had a two hour plenary session, by province, to look at the draft and submit some changes. Everyone there was a participant, and had the opportunity to put their two cents worth into the statement, and feel as if they were being heard. And so, there was no one sitting on the bench. Everyone was in play that was there. I found that to be meaningful. Not only did we get to listen to sermons, talks, and lectures, but we were able to participate verbally, and in a written form. Our individual thoughts, desires, and wishes were made known.
BJK: Explain what it was like being part of the small groups that meet at GAFCON.
GR+: One of the things I found rewarding and valuable, at General Convention, other synods, and GAFCON in particular, was the networking in small groups. Coffee breaks were also valuable for networking. The transportation to and from the hotel to the conference site was a great opportunity as well. With such a large group of pilgrims, and since this meeting was organized in such a short period of time, the conference site itself was the location where a very small number of pilgrims lodged. Three or four hundred stayed at the Renaissance, which was the location of the conference. The rest of us were scattered all over Jerusalem in another ten or so hotels. Each morning a bus was assigned to each hotel and brought the other pilgrims to the Renaissance. Likewise, we returned after the evening session. There were thirty or so pilgrims from my hotel that I rode the bus with each day of the week. They were from Britain, Uganda, Nigeria, Australia, New Zealand, and Canada. The rewarding part of that is getting to network with people from around the Communion, from different countries, who were all there for the same reason. We have a mutual problem, or crisis. One of the Brits made the analogy that this is like a virus that hit his computer. It began in the U. S. A. and Canada, but it has spread throughout the Anglican Communion. The people in New Zealand are just as concerned about this crisis as we are in America. Like wise, so are the Brits and Ugandans. I think the unique aspect of GAFCON is having this multi-national gathering, or global conference, to deal with the future of the Anglican Communion, by focusing on this one issue we all have in common. This may have started here in America and Canada, but, it has spread throughout the Anglican Communion and affected everyone. Perhaps infected may be a better term.
BJK: For Gregg Riley the pilgrim, what were some of the most spiritually uplifting moments for you?
GR+: My Mount of Olives experience was a very powerful one. One evening, though I can’t exactly remember what day it was, we went into the old city, toward sunset, and all twelve-hundred pilgrims were seated on the steps of the second temple. Yes, those steps are still there. They are on the south side of the city wall. When you are sitting there, looking out at Judea, you look across the old city of David. To your left is the Mount of Olives, and to the right would be where the Upper Room location was. Then it sinks in that you are sitting on the temple steps. If you look down the Crusader Wall, you can see an archway had been plastered over during the crusader period. This arch would have been the entrance way to the Holy Mount, through which Jesus would have entered to turn over the tables of the money changers. Also, the gate behind us, which is now closed, would have been the one he exited. The possibility of Jesus having walked up and down these steps, at the age of twelve, having been brought there by his parents, was thought provoking. Tradition also says that St. Peter preached the Pentecost sermon on these steps, and, where three-thousand people were converted. We had an evening prayer service right there in that spot. That was truly a blessing when you realized where you were. Peter and Paul, and probably Jesus himself, had gone up and down those steps, along with numerous other saints. This was a very special place. I also had the opportunity to say a prayer at the Wailing Wall.
BJK: Do you have any reservations or concerns about the outcome of GAFCON, particularly concerning the statement that was issued by the assembly?
GR+: Personally, I do not. I mean, as I said, coming from the Anglo-Catholic wing, and speaking to Bishop Ackerman and Bishop Iker personally, they seemed to be pleased with the outcome. Some SSC brothers who were there said, in essence, we got more than we thought we would get. I don’t know how much more we could have gotten out of GAFCON. A majority of the Communion recognizes the chasm between the orthodox and the revisionists in TEC is so wide it cannot be breached. The split has occurred, and the only alternative is a new Anglican Province. GAFCON gave us that, and to me that was the biggest prize. The new province is not a “what if” but it “is.” I don’t know what more we could have gotten.
BJK: What does GAFCON mean for the Lambeth Conference? What about the Covenant process?
GR+: The question, in my mind, and I am speaking as an individual, is how much value does the Windsor Report hold today? Two years after General Convention 2006, where we failed miserably to respond to the Windsor Report, in an adequate fashion, (B003 was not an adequate response by any means), a number of the signatories from the House of Bishops, stated they didn’t intend to comply by it. By the recent actions of the three bishops in California, you can see that is the case. They have already given the green light to their clergy to perform same-sex blessings, without the consent of the wider Communion. Obviously, they don’t intend to comply. If TEC has no intention to comply with the Windsor Report then whatever input TEC has in the Covenant process is going to be just as miserable. By the time the Covenant is agreed upon, if it is ever agreed upon by TEC, it will not be the same instrument that it started out to be. Therefore, I don’t see any value in the Windsor Report or the Covenant at this point. I know the draft will be discussed at General Convention, and I am a deputy, as I was in 2006. After seeing how the convention dealt with the Windsor Report, I can’t imagine that the Covenant will get a better reception.
BJK: What is the next step for the Diocese of Western Louisiana and Grace Church?
GR+: Our Diocesan Convention meets in October and I sit on the executive council of the diocese. The Bishop has told me personally that after Lambeth, the executive council will meet in August. He will then give us his opinion concerning where things are and the options we have for the diocese. It is his desire that IF the diocese chooses to do something that we do it as a whole. I would also prefer that. Being realistic, whatever decision the diocese makes, if we decide to move as a diocese, there will be certain clergy, parishes, and laypeople who will want to remain in TEC. Likewise, if we don’t move as a diocese, there will be clergy, parishes, and lay people who don’t want to stay. That will be a reality after October. The bishop is wise enough, and intelligent enough, to know that is going to happen. No matter what happens at the convention in October, someone will not be happy. There is going to be movement, but the question is where.
BJK: Is there anything else which you would like to share about your experience at GAFCON that we have not already covered?
GR+: The first Mass I celebrated after I returned from GAFCON was Wednesday at noon. We had a good crowd, and, I shared with them some experiences I had while attending the conference. I thanked them, as I will thank the congregation on Sunday, for sending me there. I thank Bishop Duncan for the invitation. I thank the congregation for being supportive, and allowing me to experience GAFCON and to bring the experience back to share with them. I’ve attended six General Conventions as a deputy, and numerous other conferences, but nothing on the global scale of GAFCON, with the common purpose and in the context of worship. The fourteen points of the declaration, to me, are a statement of basic Christianity. These points are basic to the faith. I feel privileged to be part of it, and put my comments into it. More importantly, I am thankful to have had the opportunity to be in that particular place, the holy city of Jerusalem, with other pilgrims, and see it as more than a workshop, or pep rally for the orthodox, but rather as a conference centered on worship and prayer, which resulted in the issuing of a creedal statement of Faith, much like that which came out of Nicea. We were there for a reason. The statement will, I believe, impact the rest of the Communion. It was a historic event. It was not a moment in time, as one of the archbishops said, rather it is a movement. Let’s see where the Lord is going to take it.
BJK: Thank you for your time Fr. Riley. I hope what you have said will be helpful for others to read. Thank you for your attendance at this historic conference.
GR+: Thank you, B.J. and God’s blessings and grace be upon you.
Posted by Bobby J. Kennedy at 9:02 PM
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